


A Change of Scenery

by cmk418



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Community: trope_bingo, Fluff, M/M, Mistletoe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-12
Updated: 2013-02-12
Packaged: 2017-11-29 01:36:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/681205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cmk418/pseuds/cmk418
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Of all the gin joints in all the world... </p><p>On Christmas Eve, Dave walks into a bar which is re-playing game seven of the 2011 Quarterfinals between Vancouver and Chicago and meets Daniel Sedin under the mistletoe.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Change of Scenery

**Author's Note:**

> Written for trope_bingo's prompt of mistletoe kiss.

Seabs walks through the locker room singing an off-key rendition of “Feliz Navidad” at the top of his lungs. 

“We’re heading down to Mexico for the three days,” Dunc says. “What are you doing, Bolly?”

“Don’t know yet,” Dave replies.

The smile falls from Dunc’s face, replaced by a look of confusion. “You don’t know? It’s in less than a week.”

“Probably just stay around here for the duration.”

“Because you don’t stay here the rest of the time,” Seabs’ eyes narrow. “You met somebody,” he accuses. He doesn’t mention Dave’s family as an option. After what Dave’s been through with them, even being here in Chicago would be better.

Dave scoffs. He doesn’t go out to anywhere he could meet somebody unless he’s with the two of them. They’ve been his gay mentors since he came out to them three months ago. 

“You’re going to meet somebody,” Dunc predicts. “We go away for a few days and come back and you’ll be playing house with someone you picked up. And you’ll never listen to our advice about him and…”

“Duncan,” Seabs tries to interject.

“And it’ll just be a Christmas thing because you know, it’s the holidays and you’ll be lucky if it lasts you until Valentine’s Day and you’ll be…”

“Duncan!” Seabs yells.

“What?”

“Projecting and probably scaring as well.”

Dave shakes his head, slightly amused by both men’s tendency to overprotect him. _It must be a defense thing,_ he thinks.

“Sorry,” Duncan mumbles.

“I have an idea. Why don’t you take my place in BC for the holiday? I can give you the rundown on some local places that you might want to check out, but a change of scenery might do you good.”

On Christmas Eve, the three of them head to the airport. Seabs hands over his keys, issues a warning to “Be good and if you can’t be good, be careful”, and then Dave is on his way to British Columbia.

Seabrook’s place is nice. There are pictures all over the house, of family, of the team, of Brent and Duncan together. Except for a few of the team, the pictures are a reminder of what he doesn’t have. He’s really glad there isn’t a decorated Christmas tree set up or else he might be in danger of getting really depressed.

He looks at the list that Seabs made up for him. There are several bars and clubs written on it with notes about each. _Sports bar/too Canuck heavy_ reads one description and Dave didn’t even know there was such a thing as gay sports bars. _Crowded dance floor, great for anonymity_ is written beside the next, and _quiet corner bar where people keep to themselves_ describes a third. Dave supposes there are more places to go to, but he really doesn’t want to spend the entire vacation drinking, and he trusts Brent’s opinion.

He doesn’t need quiet, but also doesn’t need the pressure of having to dance. He opts for the Canuck-heavy sports bar and thanks the hockey gods that nobody’s playing the next few days.

Except when he goes in late that night, the sports bar is playing game seven from the 2011 quarterfinals. Dave grimaces and goes for a beer anyway. Maybe he’ll be drunk by the time they reach the overtime. That’s a goal to shoot for.

There are men in the bar who glance at him and then look away. He doesn’t know what that’s about only that it’s a little rude and makes him feel lonelier than he is. Maybe they recognize him – he’s second only to Dunc as Vancouver’s least-loved Blackhawk.

Dave glances back up at the television again. _God, this game._ He leaves his beer on the bar and decides to go for a walk around. There’s not enough space to get lost in, but maybe there’s a table pointing toward a television that’s not showing one of his least favorite moments. He’s making his way down a corridor and winds up bumping shoulders with someone. 

“Sorry,” he mumbles as the other man says, “Excuse me” and then more incredulously, “Bolland?”

Dave looks up in the direction of the voice and if this night could get any worse he doesn’t know how. 

“Oh there you are,” says another voice, heavily accented in French.

And yep, the night has just gotten worse. Instead of one Canuck, he’s now facing two. 

“Ryan said to tell you he’s sorry for upsetting you. He didn’t know that you had a crush on…”

“Alex,” whichever Sedin twin it is hisses under his breath and inclines his head toward Dave.

“Oh! I will just… you stay here… and I will… I have to tell Ryan.” A wide grin splits Burrows’ face. He leans over and whispers something in the Sedin’s ear.

The Sedin glances up toward the ceiling as Burrows scampers away. Dave follows his gaze and almost wishes he hadn’t.

There, hanging four feet above their heads, is a sprig of mistletoe.

“I don’t suppose the Swedish tradition involves going our separate ways and forgetting this ever happened?”

“In Sweden, both people must remove all their clothing and then kiss four specific places on the body.” There’s a twinkle in his eye when he says this, so Dave knows the Sedin is teasing him.

And he knows something else, as surely as anything. “You’re Daniel.”

“Correct.” He is rewarded when Daniel grins at him.

“What are you doing here?”

“Alex and Ryan thought they would take me out. Hope I would meet someone.”

“Um… you know this is a gay bar, right? I mean, you’re not here to… mmph.” Dave stops as Daniel’s mouth descends on his. It’s a brief, but surprisingly thorough kiss that leaves Dave wanting more.

“I’m not here to,” says Daniel.

Daniel looks like he’s about to lean in again when Ryan Kesler arrives on the scene. “Holy shit. Alex told me but I didn’t believe him, but here you are. Looks like Santa-“

“Ryan,” Daniel says, a warning note in his voice that Dave actually likes.

Ryan gives them both the obnoxious grin that he’s been sporting for what seems like forever. “By the way, he’s standing under the mistletoe. Come back when you’re done, we can watch Alex’s goal.” He turns his attention momentarily to Dave. “You remember that one, don’t you?” Then, before Dave can even think about punching him, Kesler heads back the way he came.

“We should probably move,” says Daniel.

Dave wraps an arm around him, pulling him closer. “Don’t you know, caught twice, have to fulfill twice. It’s a- mmph.” Daniel’s lips crash into his again and _damn it, he wanted to do that._ , but the kiss is slow and drawn out and leaves Dave breathless.

As they slowly part, Dave says, “I don’t suppose you have other teammates in this bar.”

“No, just Ryan and Alex.”

“Pity,” Dave says.

“Want me to buy you a drink? Ryan and Alex won’t mind if you join us.”

“Thanks, but I caught that goal. Once. It was enough.”

Two guys walk past them and one points out, “Hey, do you know you’re standing under the mistletoe?”

Well, the third time must be a charm because this time it’s all Dave, surging forward and pushing Daniel back toward the wall, out of the range of the mistletoe. He covers Daniel’s body as completely as he does on the ice, claiming and not letting up with the kiss for several minutes. When they finally break apart, Daniel looks wrecked. Dave imagines he doesn’t look much better.

Daniel laces his fingers through Dave’s and begins moving toward the door.

“Where are we going?”

“Outside.”

“To your place?” Dave asks. 

“No.”

Daniel doesn’t say anything else, just unlocks the doors to his car. Dave opens the passenger door, but sees Daniel settling into the back seat and follows. 

“Too cold up front,” Daniel says by way of explanation. Dave bites back the suggestion that Daniel just turn on the heater and settles in next to Daniel, closing the door behind him. He feels Daniel’s body heat where their sides brush against each other and Daniel’s right – this is better.

“You have friends in Vancouver?” Daniel asks.

Dave shakes his head. “Not really. Well, yeah, Seabs, but he’s down in Mexico with Duncan.”

Daniel frowns at that statement. “I owe Alex fifty dollars. He always said, but I thought they were just doing that weird defensive pairing thing. So you are here all alone at Christmas?”

“Yeah.” They fall into silence which leaves Dave feeling slightly pathetic and wishing that they could just go back to kissing again.

He must voice that last statement out loud because Daniel laughs and says, “You don’t even like me.”

“I don’t know you except for on the ice. And you don’t like me either,” Dave counters.

“It’s Henrik that doesn’t like you. On ice, we have to play, have to compete. There’s no time for other thoughts especially when they won’t be received well.”

“Yeah, I get that… wait. Other thoughts. Other thoughts about me?” Even in the half-light of the parking lot, Dave can tell that Daniel’s blushing. “Wow.”

“Wow?” He doesn’t know what it means, only can see that Dave’s smiling like he just scored a goal. “I probably shouldn’t have said anything.”

“No. It’s okay. A little weird. But…” Dave can sense that a change of subject is in order. “Are you going to spend Christmas with your brother?”

“I will join his family for Christmas dinner. It’s always the best. His wife is a good cook and I get to play with the kids and their new toys. Fun time. Is your family…?”

“No,” Dave cuts off that line of inquiry before it can go further.

“Where are you staying?”

“At Brent’s. He thought I could use a change of scenery. Dunc just wanted me away from Chicago guys who would break my heart.”

“They are your Ryan and Alex.”

“I guess.”

“How long have you known?”

“Less than a year, actually. I tried with women. It didn’t take. And then I caught Dunc and Seabs kissing and something just clicked. It just became possible. What about you?”

“A long time. Henrik guessed before I was ready to say anything.”

Dave laughs. “So your brother has better gay-dar than you?”

“He had me sit down with Ryan and Alex. It was so embarrassing. They look after me, but they’re not the good influence that Henrik believes they are.”

“Obviously not, if they left you with me.”

“Are you going to corrupt me?” There’s a light in his eyes that says that Daniel wouldn’t mind that at all.

“Given the opportunity. And you’re going to break my heart. Like Dunc warned me about.”

“I am not a ‘Chicago guy’, but perhaps we should go our separate ways and forget all about it.”

“Or…”

“Or?”

“We could steal that mistletoe and you could point out those four very specific body parts that I need to kiss.”

“What four?” asks Daniel.

“Hah!” says Dave, triumphantly. “I knew you were making -mmph.”

They don’t speak for a long time after that, interrupted only by the buzz of an incoming text to Daniel’s phone.

Daniel glances at his phone. “It’s from Alex. They’re going to take a cab home.”

“Maybe I should…” Dave starts.

“Come home with me.”

Of all the invitations Dave has ever received, this one is the most surreal. That still doesn’t stop him from taking Daniel up on it.

Later that night, as the two of them lay tangled in the sheets in Daniel’s bedroom, Dave asks, “Why me?”

Daniel trails his fingers down Dave’s arm. “I like the way you go after me on the ice.”

“That would put me in competition with half of the league.”

“You’re the best at it.”

“Careful. You’ll make me want to go after you harder.”

“I’m counting on it,” Daniel says, kissing him gently.

“We’re playing here New Year’s Eve.”

“Yes.”

Dave laces his fingers through Daniel’s. “Maybe if neither of us is injured by midnight, we might be able to ring in the New Year together.”

“That sounds nice.”

“I could kiss you at midnight.”

“What if I don’t want to wait that long?”

“I can kiss you before then.”

“Kiss me now?”

Dave willingly complies.

The following Christmas Eve, Daniel’s home has mistletoe hanging from every doorway and Dave doesn’t mind being caught.


End file.
